Research Guides: Data Sciences and Analytics: Books

Where to Find Background Information

Reference sources like encyclopedia entries and subject dictionaries are great resources for learning about your topic. What are the main theories related to your topic? Who are the key theorists? What disciplines are related to your topic? You can find scholarly summaries and background information on your topic using reference sources found in the resources listed below.

Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
- Find encyclopedias, handbooks and specialized reference sources for research.
- Interdisciplinary.
- Permitted Uses
Sage Knowledge This link opens in a new window
- Authoritative, interdisciplinary handbooks and encyclopedias across the social sciences.
- Brock owns the complete book, reference and navigator collection.
- Permitted Uses
SAGE Knowledge Homepage from SAGE Publications, Inc. on Vimeo.
Oxford Reference This link opens in a new window
- Interdisciplinary
- Includes Oxford Quick Reference of core subject, quotation, and language dictionaries and Oxford Reference Library of companions and multi-volume encyclopedias for longer, in-depth, essays and specialist definitions.
- Limited to 5 simultaneous users.
- Permitted Uses

Books/ebooks provide summary and background context including definitions for key concepts and subjects. Open Education Resources also provide free/open content as digital ebooks, learning objects and manuals for general information. A selective list of book/ebook databases include:

Omni This link opens in a new window
- Brock's largest Interdisciplinary search tool
- Millions of journal articles, books & ebooks, newspapers, videos, magazines and more!
Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB) This link opens in a new window
- Interdisciplinary
- Find full text, peer-reviewed books and edited volumes.
- Terms of Use from Publisher Site
Google Books This link opens in a new window
- Search by keyword(s) and/or phrase(s) to retrieve converted digital equivalents of scanned print books. Retrieved digital copies indicate pages missing.
- Search Brock Library's Omni to find identical or print equivalents.
- Terms of Use from Publisher Site

E-Books Directory
Open or freely accessible ebooks, documents and lecture notes found all over the internet.